Category The big Indochina trip
I’ve had an active day in Bangkok, doing the rounds of the main tourist attractions. I started with the Grand Palace and Wat Pra Kaeow, both of which are full of both splendor and tourists. It’s almost too much gold and decorations to take it all in and as you get jostled around by the other visitors it’s a bit stressful. I also noted that except for the billboards honoring the king, there were hundreds of black clad Thai people around the palace, waiting to pay their respects.
They have some … Read the rest
I will admit there were times during my journey through Vietnam and Laos when I felt tired of riding a motorbike: the pain sitting in the same position for hours, the exposure to the elements, the constant concentration. When I left the motorbike in the care of the travel agent and booked my tickets, I thought it would be nice to take a bus for a change, just sit back, listen to some music and relax. By now I know that that’s generally not the case when taking a bus here, it’s bound to take at least one or two … Read the rest
My main reason for coming to Battambang was the bamboo train which sounded really cool. So, this morning I rented a motorbike and headed out to the train station. The train is actually more like a small rail cart consisting of a wooden frame covered with bamboo slats that rests on two axles and is driven by a little petrol engine at the back. Me and my companions, a guy from Singapore I talked to on the boat yesterday and some guys from his hostel, took our seats on the little cusions provided, and off we went along the crooked, … Read the rest
My tagline is “the journey is part of the destination” and today this was certainly the case. I wanted to go to Battambang and there is a bus but I heard that the boat, though slower and more expensive, is a worthwhile experience so I decided to try. At seven in the morning a minibus picked me up and brought me out of Siem Reap down to Chong Khneas on the shore of the Tonle Sap. There I got on the boat which was quite a simple thing made from wood, with a thumping diesel engine in the back and … Read the rest
At the end of November I wrote that I had left my motorbike with a travel agent in order to try and sell it. Well, just a few days after leaving Laos I got a message from the travel agent saying she had sold it to some backpackers and now she wanted to know how to send me the money. I told her to send it via Western Union since they have offices all over Asia. Thinking I would be able to collect the money in few days, Yini and I continued traveling in Cambodia just like planned. When the … Read the rest
So today has mostly been a waste of time. The plan was to go up to Anlong Veng near the Thai border and visit the house of Ta Mok, one of Pol Pot’s butchers. The day after we would rent a motorbike and make a day trip to the Preah Vihear temples.
We got to Anlong Veng by taxi (for some reason there is no public transport) and quickly found a guesthouse. Despite the rain that had started to fall we headed over to Ta Mok’s house which turned out to be pretty much nothing, just a few old buildings … Read the rest
There are several floating villages in Tonle Sap lake/river (the distinction between them is a moot point). The most easily accessible from Siem Reap is Chong Khneas but I’ve heard it’s a bit of a Disney land with more tourists than locals and plenty of people trying to scam you, so I didn’t want to go there. Somewhat further away is Kampong Phluk which is an authentic village but apparently it’s quite small so a visit there will be very short. About 50 kilometers from the city is Kampong Khleang which is a much larger town than Kampong Phluk with … Read the rest
After our sunrise excursion yesterday we decided to let ourselves sleep as long as we wanted. We spent the morning shopping for handicrafts and taking care of various other things.
After lunch we called up our tuk tuk driver and set off to the temples one last time. We started with one called Preah Khan which is just north of Angkor Thom. It is in much worse shape than the others, with large piles of rubble, and whole rooms that are inaccessible. The parts that are still standing however have some beautiful carvings.
Entering Preah Khan 
The front of the
I’ve heard from several sources that you should see Angkor Wat at sunrise, so this morning we forced ourselves out of our comfortable bed at four o’clock. Our Tuk Tuk driver picked us up and we set off into the cold, starry night.
When we arrived at the temple there were already some people waiting but we managed to claim a spot right at the edge of the pool facing the temple. Soon there was a veritable crowd, three rows deep lining the edge of the pool, we were lucky to be so early. After a while we started seeing … Read the rest
From Sihanoukville we took a night bus to Siem Reap. The bus was surprisingly good and we were both able to sleep most of the way. When we arrived we were lucky enough to be able to check in right away. After resting up for a little while we headed out to what is bound to be an important part of any trip to Cambodia, the temples of Angkor.
Our original plan was to rent a motorbike but I read that there is some kind of ban on renting motorbikes for use in the city and apparently there are a … Read the rest